Photo: Shazz · CC BY-SA 2.0The Liberal Democrats hold a majority on Eastleigh Borough Council
Hamble-le-Rice is run by Eastleigh Borough Council and Hampshire County Council, with Hamble-le-Rice parish council for local matters. The Liberal Democrats have a majority on Eastleigh Borough Council. No party holds a majority on Hampshire County Council. Its MP is Paul Holmes (Conservative), member for Hamble Valley.
£2,443
Band D, a year, the middle band every council sets its tax from.
Where it goes →How Hamble-le-Rice’s politics has changed since 2021
A majority on Eastleigh Borough Council
The Liberal Democrats hold a majority on Eastleigh Borough Council: 34 of its 38 seats as elected. Independents hold 3, the Conservatives 1. Who’s in charge ↓
Hampshire changed hands in 2026
Hampshire County Council, which runs schools, social care and roads, went from a Conservative majority (54 of 78 seats in 2021) to no overall control at the May 2026 election: the Conservatives won 27 of 78 seats. Hampshire ↓
The 2026 vote
Across Hamble-le-Rice’s wards, the Liberal Democrats took 43.6%, Reform UK took 29.4% and the Conservatives took 14% of votes in May 2026. In 2024, the Liberal Democrats had 58.8%. How Hamble-le-Rice has voted ↓
Council tax
A Band D bill in Hamble-le-Rice is £2,443 for 2026–27; Eastleigh Borough Council keeps 5% of it. The council area’s Band D has risen 57% in ten years, in line with England’s 56%. Council money ↓
Written from the data on this page: Democracy Club results since May 2021, the UK Parliament Members API and MHCLG council tax.
Who holds the seats on Hamble-le-Rice’s councils
Seats by party as elected. A party needs 20 of Eastleigh’s 38 or 40 of Hampshire’s 78 seats to run the council alone.
- Liberal Democrat34
- Independent3
- Conservative1
Latest election: May 2026.
- Conservative27−27
- Liberal Democrat26+8
- Reform UK20+20
- Community Campaign (Hart)1+1
- Green1no change
- Independent1no change
- Labour1−2
- Whitehill & Bordon Community Party1no change
Change against the council before the 7 May 2026 election.
Seats are counted from election results: each ward’s most recent winners until its seats are filled. Councillors who have since changed party or resigned aren’t reflected, and which parties lead the council, and who is leader, comes from the council itself.
Results: Democracy Club (CC BY 4.0), elections since May 2021; seats per ward from its EveryElection.
Two tiers of council, and a parish tier
Hamble-le-Rice has two tiers of council: the county runs the big services, the district the local ones.
Local matters: allotments, play areas, halls, footpaths and benches; it is consulted on planning and adds a precept to the council tax bill. A town council is a parish council by another name.
100% of Hamble-le-Rice’s residents · Band D precept £237
Bins and recycling, planning, housing, environmental health, leisure, and collecting council tax.
Website ↗Schools, social care, roads and transport, libraries and waste disposal.
Website ↗Who to ask
From GOV.UK’s “Understand how your council works”: in two-tier areas the district or borough runs local services and the county the big ones.
Councils from ONS lookups (wards and councils May 2026, parishes 2025), names and websites from GOV.UK’s local council finder; parish councils from MHCLG’s 2026–27 list of precepting parishes.
From the parish to Westminster
Every elected tier that speaks for Hamble-le-Rice, from the most recent elections.
- 1Town or parishParish tierHamble-le-Rice parish council
- 2Eastleigh Borough Council1 ward · 1 councillorPrad Bains
- 3Hampshire County Council1 division · 1 councillorKeith House
- 4Police and crime commissionerHampshire Constabulary · elected May 2024Donna Jones
- 5House of CommonsHamble Valley
Party colours are neutral on purpose: they tell parties apart and aren’t the parties’ own. Tap an MP’s name for their contact page on parliament.uk.
1 councillor for 1 ward
Wards with at least 2% of the town’s residents, or half their own inside it. Each shows who won its most recent elections, newest first, until its seats are filled.
- Prad BainsLiberal Democrat · May 2026
Show as a table, with Hampshire County Council’s 1 division (1 councillor)
| Ward | Seats | Elected | When |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hamble & Netley45% in Hamble-le-Rice · 4,613 residents1 seat · May 2026 | 1 | Prad Bains | May 2026 |
Hampshire County Council: county divisions
| Division | Seats | Elected | When |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hamble ED45% in Hamble-le-Rice · 4,613 residents1 seat · May 2026 | 1 | Keith House | May 2026 |
Councillors can resign, change party or sit as independents between elections; a by-election winner replaces someone not named here. Eastleigh Borough Council’s website lists who sits now.
Results from Democracy Club’s candidates database (CC BY 4.0; elections since May 2021) and ward seats from its EveryElection, matched to ONS wards (May 2026) and county divisions (May 2025).
The Liberal Democrats have led every council vote since 2021
Share of all votes cast for candidates in Hamble-le-Rice’s wards at each scheduled council election since 2021. A gap is a year with no election here.
Seats won at each election
Show as a table
| Party | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Green | 0% | 4.5% | 7.7% | 6.8% | 9.5% |
| Labour | 11.6% | 6.1% | 6.5% | 6.5% | 3.6% |
| Liberal Democrat | 55.9% | 62.8% | 54.1% | 58.8% | 43.6% |
| Independent | 0% | 0% | 15.9% | 13.1% | 0% |
| Conservative | 32.5% | 26.6% | 15.8% | 14.9% | 14% |
| Reform UK | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 29.4% |
In 2026, the Liberal Democrats won 1 of the 1 seats up in Hamble-le-Rice’s wards.
Results: Democracy Club (CC BY 4.0). Where a ward elects several councillors at once, each voter has that many votes; all of them count here.
Eastleigh council election, May 2026
Results in the wards that make up Hamble-le-Rice, as declared. Percentages are of votes cast for candidates in each ward; where a ward elects several councillors, each voter has that many votes.
1 ward voted. Every seat in the town’s wards was up.
No election is scheduled yet for Hamble-le-Rice’s wards in Democracy Club’s list. Councils publish a notice of election about five weeks before polling day.
Who can I vote for? ↗3,608 votes for candidates
Candidates and results: Democracy Club (CC BY 4.0), from councils’ declared results; polling dates from Democracy Club’s EveryElection.
Hamble-le-Rice is in Hamble Valley constituency
The constituency’s MP and the 4 July 2024 general election, the whole constituency’s result (it reaches beyond Hamble-le-Rice).
54,004 votes for candidates · majority 4,802
Conservative, MP since 12 December 2019.
turnout in July 2024: 54,004 votes from 79,478 registered voters. England: 60%.
Majority 4,802 of 54,004 votes (8.9%): the 164th-narrowest of 543 in England.
MPs and results: UK Parliament Members API (Open Parliament Licence v3.0); constituencies from ONS (2024 boundaries). Percentages are of valid votes; turnout is votes cast over the electorate.
Hamble-le-Rice’s Band D council tax is £2,443 a year
Where a Band D bill goes, what it has cost over the years, and what the councils plan to spend per resident.
Eastleigh Borough Council keeps £131.71 of a Band D bill (5%); the rest goes to the Hamble-le-Rice parish council, Hampshire County Council, the Hampshire police and crime commissioner and the Hampshire and IOW Fire and Rescue Authority.
Band D since 1993
Eastleigh’s Band D bill has risen 57% in ten years, from £1,495.77 in 2016–17, in line with England’s average (56%). It was £490.50 in 1993–94.
Your bill by band
A Band D home in Hamble-le-Rice, 2026–27, before discounts. The Valuation Office Agency’s band search gives any home’s band.
Hampshire’s councils
Average Band D in each council area, 2026–27, parish precepts included; the 11 nearest of 13. Bars start at £2,100.
Council budgets per resident, 2026–27
Show as a table, with Hampshire
| Eastleigh + Hampshire | Hamble-le-Rice’s councils | Hampshire | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Adult social care | £486 | £478 | £487 |
| Children’s social care | £258 | £272 | £290 |
| Roads and transport | £53 | £49 | £41 |
| Housing (not council homes’ rents) | £-19 | £37 | £61 |
| Bins, street cleaning, environment | £83 | £121 | £119 |
| Libraries, leisure, culture | £13 | £38 | £44 |
| Planning and development | £15 | £32 | £26 |
| Public health | £50 | £62 | £78 |
| Running the council | £116 | £58 | £59 |
| Other | £-2 | £1 | £19 |
| Total, schools apart | £1,053 | £1,146 | £1,234 |
Net budgeted service spending, MHCLG Revenue Account budget 2026–27, per resident (ONS mid-2025 estimates). Both tiers added: Eastleigh per its residents plus Hampshire per the county’s. Schools are left out: academies are paid for directly by government, so council school budgets depend on how many schools have converted. Hampshire and England: all their councils together. Police, fire and transport authorities aren’t included.
Band D: MHCLG Band D council tax 2026–27 (each authority’s own figure, excluding parish precepts) and Council Tax statistics for town and parish councils 2026–27; since 1993–94, MHCLG’s area averages including parishes.
Having a say in how Hamble-le-Rice is run
It takes about five minutes online; the deadline is 12 working days before a poll.
gov.uk ↗Type a postcode to write to each of its councillors and its MP.
WriteToThem ↗GOV.UK sends the report to the council that looks after the road.
gov.uk ↗Council and committee meetings are open to the public, with agendas and minutes online.
eastleigh.gov.uk ↗Anyone can comment while an application is open for consultation.
eastleigh.gov.uk ↗The rules, nomination papers and guidance for council candidates.
Electoral Commission ↗Questions about how Hamble-le-Rice is run
Which council runs Hamble-le-Rice?
Hamble-le-Rice is run by Eastleigh Borough Council and Hampshire County Council. The county council runs schools, social care and roads; the district runs bins, planning and housing.
Does Hamble-le-Rice have a town council?
Yes: Hamble-le-Rice has its own parish-tier council (Hamble-le-Rice parish council; town councils are parish councils by another name), which adds £237 to a Band D bill in 2026–27.
Who is the MP for Hamble-le-Rice?
Paul Holmes (Conservative) is the MP for Hamble Valley, which covers Hamble-le-Rice.
How many councillors does Hamble-le-Rice have?
1 ward councillors represent Hamble-le-Rice’s 1 ward, and 1 county councillors its county divisions.
When are the next elections in Hamble-le-Rice?
No election is scheduled yet in Democracy Club’s list for Hamble-le-Rice’s wards. The next UK general election must be held by August 2029.
How much is council tax in Hamble-le-Rice?
Band D council tax in Hamble-le-Rice is £2,443 for 2026–27. Your bill depends on your home’s band, from A (6/9 of Band D) to H (18/9).
Who controls Eastleigh Borough Council?
The Liberal Democrats have a majority: 34 of 38 seats as elected. The council’s website lists who leads it now.
Who controls Hampshire County Council?
No party has a majority. As elected, Conservative 27 · Liberal Democrat 26 · Reform UK 20 · Green 1 · Labour 1 · Independent 1 · Community Campaign (Hart) 1 · Whitehill & Bordon Community Party 1 of 78 seats; a majority needs 40.
Who won the 2026 council election in Hamble-le-Rice?
In Hamble-le-Rice’s wards on 7 May 2026, Liberal Democrat 1 of the 1 seats up. The Liberal Democrats had the largest share of votes, 43.6%.
Sources: ONS ward, county division, parish, constituency lookups (Census 2021 output areas; Open Government Licence v3.0) · GOV.UK local council finder · Democracy Club candidates (CC BY 4.0) and EveryElection · UK Parliament Members API (Open Parliament Licence v3.0) · MHCLG Band D council tax, parish precepts and Revenue Account budgets 2026–27 (OGL v3.0) · ONS mid-2025 population estimates. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0.
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Contains HM Land Registry data © Crown copyright and database right 2026. Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2026 (ONS boundaries). Northern Ireland: Source: NISRA; contains Land & Property Services data and Ordnance Survey of Northern Ireland information, © Crown copyright, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Scotland: contains National Records of Scotland data, Registers of Scotland data and SEPA data, © Crown copyright / © SEPA 2025, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.